SitcomsOnline Digest: Must See TV on NBC Officially Dead; Enlisted and Back in the Game on MOD DVD

Saturday, December 13, 2014

SitcomsOnline Digest: Must See TV on NBC Officially Dead; Enlisted and Back in the Game on MOD DVD

Welcome to SitcomsOnline Digest! Things are settling down in the world of sitcom news as we are approaching Christmas, but we're here with news of the (official) death of Must See TV, David Letterman's exit from The Late Show, and more. Let's get going!

HIGHLIGHTS FROM SITCOMSONLINE.COM AND AROUND THE WEB

NBC's Thursday night lineup has been a haven for sitcoms for the past 34 years, and most (if not all) of NBC's successful and memorable sitcoms since 1980 have aired as part of that lineup for most of their run. Now, it is completely dead, as NBC has turned Thursday night into drama night. (Complex)
Zap2It has ranked NBC's "Must See TV" sitcoms from best to worst, with Seinfeld making it to the top and Coupling making it to the bottom at #62. (Zap2it)
May 20 will be David Letterman's last night on The Late Show. No word yet on when Stephen Colbert will take over. (Washington Post)
Murder, She Wrote will debut on one of the broadcast retro networks for the first time ever on COZI TV in January. (SitcomsOnline)
MeTV is also looking ahead to a new lineup beginning January 1. (SitcomsOnline)

HOME MEDIA HIGHLIGHTS

CBS will be releasing Petticoat Junction - Family Favorites on March 10, and while we don't know the exact content of this eight episode disc, it will likely consist of episodes from the seasons of the series that have been released so far.
Enlisted didn't last long on Fox, but it can last a lot longer on your DVD shelf, as Fox has released Enlisted - The Complete Series as a MOD release.
Another short-lived series is also available as a MOD release from Fox: 2013's Back in the Game, with Back in the Game - The Complete Series.

DECEMBER 16 HOME MEDIA RELEASES

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B00NALHK5E/ref=nosim/happydaysonline5-20

Batman - The Complete Series (Blu-ray, $239.99): If this release sounds familiar, that is because technically it is already out on Blu-ray, but now Warner Home Video is bringing fans a lower priced version without the extras.
The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis - The Final Season (DVD, $29.93): While the complete series was released long ago, Shout! now finishes up the individual season releases.

FOLLOW ME

Who to Follow: Todd Bridges (Twitter) "Todd Bridges\ actor / Director /stand up comic"

Claim to Fame: As we continue on our child stars from the past theme again this week, we have a child star from the series that really did give child stars a bad name: Diff'rent Strokes. Looking at the child stars from that series, Dana Plato was in trouble for armed robbery and dealt with drug abuse issues, Gary Coleman had a nasty financial battle with his parents, and Todd Bridges dealt with drug abuse and was even charged with the attempted murder of a drug dealer. Unfortunately, Plato and Coleman are no longer living, but Bridges is, and unlike the other two, he has managed to turn his life into something much more positive over the past two decades, and carrying a very positive and upbeat attitude towards life. Most recently, he had a recurring role on Everybody Hates Chris, as well as appearing in several reality shows. Among one of my personal favorite appearances of Bridges is his appearance in the video for The Black Keys song "Howlin' for You." As many of his fellow cast members have died since the series (in addition to the kids mentioned, Conrad Bain, Dixie Carter, Nedra Volz, and even Mary Ann Mobley), he seems to be among the few who will live the longest to remind us of the series.

Pick of the Tweets: "today me and my son are going to have a great time. I really love being a father." (November 26, 2013)

Sitcoms Airing Tonight / Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows

Monday, December 15

St. Denis Medical - "A Waste of Time and Marble" (NBC, 8:00PM ET/PT)
With the threat of a nurse walkout, Alex is caught between her colleagues and Joyce; Ron and Bruce go above and beyond to help an unexpected patient.

The Paper - "Churnalism" (NBC, 8:30PM ET/PT)
Ned takes over Esmeralda's advertorials and assigns the staff to test products themselves, but Esmeralda retaliates and covers one of Ned's stories and finds a scandal; Ken turns Adam into a lab rat; Oscar and Adelola compare pain tolerances.

Complete TV Listings

Sitcom Stars on Talk Shows (Week of December 15)

Monday, December 15

Simu Liu (Kim's Convenience) - Watch Simu on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon at 11:35pm on NBC. He also talks about The Copenhagen Test on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am and in the 10am hour.
Paul Rudd (The Shrink Next Door/Living with Yourself/Wild Oats) - Paul appears on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert at 11:35pm on CBS.
Maria Bamford (Lady Dynamite/Benched) - Maria is a guest on Comics Unleashed with Byron Allen at 12:37am on CBS.
Kerry Washington (UnPrisoned) - Andy Cohen interviews Kerry on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen at 11pm on Bravo.
Odessa A'zion (I Love LA/Fam) - Odessa talks about Marty Supreme on ABC's GMA 3: What You Need to Know at 1pm.
Patti LaBelle (Out All Night) - Patti treats us to an EXCLUSIVE festive performance of It’s The Most Wonderful Time of The Year on Tamron Hall, so check your local listings.
Kate Hudson (Running Point) - Kate talks about Song Sung Blue on NBC's Today sometime between 7-9am.
Rosie Perez (Human Resources/Search Party) - Rosie co-hosts NBC's Today in the 10am hour.
Hank Azaria (The Simpsons/Brockmire/Free Agents/Herman's Head) - Hank and The EZ Street Band stop by for a chat and performance on Live with Kelly and Mark, so check your local listings.
Ana Gasteyer (American Auto/People of Earth/Lady Dynamite/Suburgatory) - NBC's Today catches up with Ana in the 10am hour.
Connie Britton (SMILF/Lost at Home/The Fighting Fitzgeralds/Spin City) - Connie tells Sherri about starring in The Family McMullen, the sequel to The Brothers McMullen, on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
Ashley Park (Emily in Paris/Only Murders in the Building/Girls5eva/Nightcap) - Ashley talks about the highly-anticipated fifth season of Emily in Paris on Netflix on a repeat of Sherri, so check your local listings.
Glen Powell (Chad Powers/Scream Queens) - Glen talks about The Running Man on a repeat of The Drew Barrymore Show, so check your local listings.
William H. Macy (Sports Night) - William talks about Netflix's Train Dreams on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.
Andy Richter (Andy Barker, P.I./Quintuplets/Andy Richter Controls the Universe) - Andy talks about ABC's Dancing with the Stars on Access Daily with Mario & Kit, so check your local listings.